February 2009 pdf

cheerleading ruled contact sport page 8

SANDPOINT HIGH SCHOOL

FEBRUARY 2009

SEXTING

Side Note Teens take texting to the next level by crossing legal

controversy

Student Council Adviser: Mike Martz Upcoming events: Penny Wars will be taking place through the rest of February. At lunch, drop your pennies into your classes jar and the rest of your change into the other classes’.

On March 20 SHS will be hosting a Blood Drive. Look for more information soon.

The spring dance will be on April 10.

Aca Deca Adviser: Mary Bird Upcoming Events: Academic Decathlon will be having a fundraiser at Papa Murphy’s on Monday, Feb 24.

Stop by and purchase a pizza at the middle register to help support the Aca Deca state team.

Chess club Adviser: Woody Aunan Meetings: Upcoming events:

lines, bringing concern to administrators, parents HANNAH MEEK Staff reporter

*Some students in this article have had their names changed to protect their identities Drugs. Smoking. Drinking. Sexting? Teens at SHS and across the country have a new pastime that has many parents and school administrators alarmed: “sexting”, or distributing nude pictures of themselves via cell phone.

“It’s like the new form of phone sex for teens,” senior Aaron Lockwood said.

Many teens engage in sexting because they like the emotional distance texting brings.

“It’s like, you can be whoever you want emotionally, without having to really confront the person and actually say that stuff,” junior Allie Sommers* said.

According to a study by The Teenage Research Unlimited, roughly 20 percent of teens admitted to having sent or posting nude or semi-nude photos of themselves. Nearly 48 percent of teens have said they have received or sent sexually suggestive text messages.

When asking students on what they considered an actual “sext”, junior Jacob Travers said, “I think sexting is a dirty, graphic picture.”

Other students have differing opinions.

“I would say a sext is both graphic messages and words,” senior Mike Escarcega said.

The majority of the students interviewed at

SHS had participated in one form or another of sexting.

“Yeah, I have gotten a few [graphic messages],” sophomore Tanner Williams said. “I’m not going to list any names though, but some freshman would easily give out their [sexting] pictures of themselves without us

“

It’s like [when you sext], you can be whoever you want emotionally, without having to really confront the person and actually say that stuff

-Allie Sommers* Junior

”

even asking.”

“I sexted a girlfriend a long time ago, but it wasn’t pictures, we were just talking,” freshman Clayton Hume* said.

SHS students agree that men usually are the ones to initiate the sexting.

“Guys ask girls a lot,” sophomore Alison Halliday said.

The majority of graphic sext messages are of

Drinking, drugs and dances

On Mar 7, Chess club will be hosting a chess tournament open to all Sandpoint High School Students.

Sign ups are due by Mar 5 to Mr.Aunan - there is no entry fee First place prize will recieve $599, second will recieve $250, third and fourth will recieve $150 and fifth through eighth will receive $100.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MERANDA CARTER

■ TAKING THE PILL: Students find taking ectascy as a way to enhance their dance experience

Students find being under the influence helps create a new atmosphere, experience at routine school events ISAAC DUNNE

68 days

F F

We polled 185 students at SHS asking them if they had participated in either taking drugs or drinking before a dance. These are the results.

What’s inside?

News.....................................................................Page 2 Opinion................................................................Page 3,4 Arts & Culture.....................................................Page 5,6,7 Sports...................................................................Page 8,9

feature

The National Honors Society is continuing their commitment to their community through on going service projects.

NHS will be hosting their first annual Dinner for Charity in early May, hoping to raise $3,000 for local charities.

scared to dance with girls, you don’t care about what other people think about your dancing as much.

It’s not a problem. Nobody is getting in fights or *Some students in this article have had their names anything, a lot of people just don’t like to go sober.” changed to protect their identities The beefed up police presence Despite the best efforts of at Winter Ball worried Plank.

SHS administration, many SHS “I was petrified. There were students come to school dances two cops this time, not the usual under the influence of drugs or 21% have taken drugs before a dance one. But it’s easier for some kids 22% have drank alcohol before a dance alcohol. [to get in drunk],”Plank said. “If 18% have taken drugs and drank before a dance According to our poll, the you have an in with the office majority of students who attend 75% have never been under the influence before a dance they don’t look at you as hard, dances inebriated attend under the influence of girls get in easier. But if you have a bad rap they are alcohol. really going to look at you more, kids who have been Senior Jackson Plank* went to winter ball drunk. caught get eyed more.

“It’s like liquid courage,” Plank said. “You aren’t Dance continued page 5 Arts & Culture editor

page 5

Adviser: Wendy Auld Upcoming Events:

LPOSD begins early release Wednesdays Staff reporter

Adviser: Debbie Smith Upcoming Events:

N.H.S.

Sexting continued page 5

TALA WOOD

M.U.N.

The Model United Nations is finalizing their position papers for their conference in March.

MUN will be leaving for the National High School Model United Nations National Conference on March 17 and will be returning on March 21.

girls.

“It’s mostly girls sending pictures, because they’re a little more naive and they let boys trick them into doing things like that. Boys are too smart for that,” Escarcega said.

The majority of the females interviewed agreed that girls sext to get more attention and to better their relationship with men.

“Usually I would say either they are inebriated and having some fun, or they just want to send a picture to their other half and give them a little pleasure, make them have a smile throughout their day,” Escarcega said.

“I think girls do it because of the drama; it’s nothing new,” sophomore Ariel Moe said.

When teens send or receive scandalous text messages, it could result in their arrest for distributing child pornography, a felony charge with harsher consequences than many other sexual offenses. Judges can force teens as young as 14 to register as sex offenders.

student activism

Beginning Feb. 11, SHS joined Sandpoint Middle School, all the district’s elementary schools, and Lake Pend Oreille High School in getting out an hour early on select Wednesdays for part of the school year.

Other early release Wednesdays will be February 25, March 18, April 8, April 29, and May 20.

“I’m excited,” junior Alyssa Croy said, “because then on B-days I’ll get out twice as early as everybody else because I have Work-Based Learning.”

While students generally see the hour off as extra time for leisure, teachers must use the time for Professional Learning Communities; groups of teachers collaborating to further student learning.

“If teachers have the time to come together and talk about [classes], it will bring continuous improvement,” Vice Principal Penny Tenuto said.

The hour used for PLC will attempt to follow several stages.

Stage one is to “identify the desired results.”

Stage two is to “determine acceptable evidence” through assessment. The third stage is to “plan learning experience and instruction.” The last stage is a “collaboration [that] brings continuous improvement.”

“This fits into our goals really well,” Tenuto said.

When SHS switched to block scheduling, the prep periods that each teacher receives posed a problem. They were assigned randomly, so teachers in the same departments had different periods off, making it difficult to meet and discuss their plans within the department and grade level.

The early release and the extra hour will provide a common time for the teachers to meet.

While students enjoy an extra hour out of school, the classes that they come back to may be more focused and intense.

“

I was kinda struck speechless when we won. It is pretty exciting, it’s like a big feather in my cap.

-Kyle Miller

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As A

VOLUME 86, ISSUE 6

Read more about Battle of the Bands on pg. 10

Page 2 February 2009

Junior Miss pageant Feb. 3

Practices for Sandpoint Junior Miss 2009 started Feb. 3 with nine girls. The show this year will be May 2 , and the theme is “Night of a Thousand Stars”.

Junior Miss is a nationwide scholarship program that promotes academic achievement for girls in their junior year of high school.

The program is nonprofit and run by volunteers. The contestants will be judged in scholastics, fitness, talent, self-expression and a judges’ interview. There is also a Spirit of Junior Miss scholarship awarded to the girl voted by the other participants to best exemplify Junior Miss.

Cedar Post

Switch to digital TV delayed until June Garrett Dunn

Journalism Contributor Beginning June 12, 2009, all analog TV broadcasts will be discontinued or switched to a digital broadcast. The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 requires this switch to open the analog airwaves, allowing them to be used for different purposes including phone and other wireless services. The switch, originally set for Feb. 17, was delayed for financial reasons by the federal government.

The switch will not affect most people. In fact over 90 percent of TV viewers already are receiving a digital broadcast. The only people that will be affected have TVs with antennas

and analog tuners, and they will need to get DTV converter boxes to receive the digital broadcast.

“I haven’t seen one of those in forever,” sophomore Max Horn said.

The DTV converter box allows people to get their programs without having to buy a new TV. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is giving out $40 coupons for these boxes which can be bought at most electronics retailers. Along with opening airwaves, DTV provides a higherquality picture and better sound than analog.

The delay of the switch was because an estimated 6 million people would be without TV due to lack of preparation if it happened

the original date. The government also ran out of the DTV box coupons, and there were more than 2.5 million people on the waiting list to receive one when they did. Also, many of the coupon receivers did not purchase the boxes within the 90-day expiration period. This caused the needed amount of coupons to rise to compensate for the expired ones.

The majority of people are happy with the change. They get a better service, and with the use the coupons, they get it for free.

“I think technology advances are a good thing, but thats just my opinion,” sophomore Erica McKay said.

More information about the switch is available at www.dtvanswers.com.

SHS teacher to coach football at Yale JaDe DoniGan Staff Reporter

In early February, SHS teacher Doug Semones moved to New Haven, Conn., to coach the football team at Yale University.

His family will join him after graduation this June.

Semones taught senior English and a credit recovery class at Sandpoint High for three years and coached football and baseball. His wife, Linda Semones, teaches math, while their children, Jake and CJ, are seniors and freshmen, respectively.

“It’s a family affair here. We all get together and come to school together, ” Doug Semones said.

Semones was offered the job by Tom Williams, a former colleague from the University of Hawaii and the new head football coach at Yale.

“We kind of knew [Tom] was going to get a head coaching job somewhere, and when that opportunity happened he always told me, ‘You’re my first hire. You’re the guy. I want you on my staff.’ And I didn’t think it was going to happen as soon as it did, but when he got the job at Yale, he called me and offered

me a position and I felt it was too good of an opportunity to pass up,” Semones said.

Semones is thrilled about the possibilities this position offers.

“I just think it’s always exciting to be in a new environment where you have to learn new things. I’ve never been to New Haven, Connecticut, I have no idea what it’s like, I have no idea what Yale is going to be like, and I think when you put yourself in those kind of situations, it’s good for you. You have to be on your ‘A-game’ and there’s no routine. You can’t be lazy,” he said.

“Plus, I’m going to be coaching with some of my really good friends, and it’s fun coaching at a higher level. All I’m going to do is coach football. I don‘t teach classes, I don‘t have to do these other things- my job is to be a football coach, which is what I enjoy most.”

Semones won’t be leaving SHS behind completely, however.

“I’ll be back and forth. I want to come back and see some baseball games and softball games, and I’ll definitely be here for graduation,” he said. “[SHS] is a great school, and we really like it here. It wasn’t like I was looking for another job and wanting to get out of here, but it

n THINK: Mr. Semones gives an enthusiastic lecture in his senior English class

happened,” Semones said. “The opportunity was there. I always tell the seniors in my classes that you need to take risks, you need to go for it when opportunities arise, you need to get out of your little safety-box, and things like that. So I’d kind of be hypocritical

Photo Carly riCKarD

if I didn’t do it. It’s something I’ve wanted to do. We’ll move, and it will be an adventure.

And we’ll adjust. CJ will adjust to a new school in Connecticut, she’ll figure it out. It’s about the journey, right? This is just another part of it.”

President Barack Obama addresses economy, foreign relations during his first month in the Oval Office Copy Editor

President Barack Obama has been in office for more than a month now, after taking his oath on Jan. 20. In that month, he has taken several decisive actions intended to improve the economy, foreign relations and to institute a government based on accountability.

A major priority for Obama is the Economic Stimulus package. Obama is pushing hard for the $750-800 billion stimulus package before Congress; his top priority from the spending is job creation.

Money will go toward creating jobs in infrastructure, alternative energy and changes intended to modernize healthcare.

Some students oppose this plan.

“It just puts us more in debt and doesn’t solve the true problems in our system. It’s a good band-aid, but not a true fix,” senior John Brusaw said.

Although Obama has also been trying to make his numerous appointments early, four attempted appointments have fallen through due to financial scandals.

Obama admitted his mistakes concerning his appointments, saying he was frustrated with himself for sending the message that there are “two sets of rules… one for

prominent people and one for ordinary techniques. folks.” He also recentely signed an exeutive “I guess it’s good,” junior Mikka Nostdahl order requiring appointees to swear they were said. “Because of the treatment of the not hired because of political affiliations or prisoners.” contributions.

Some question this move, however.

Obama’s plan to “Where the heck close the 22-year-old are we going to put Guantanamo Bay all the prisoners?” detention camp at senior Dalton The United States intends to prosthe US Navy base Hawkins said. ecute the ongoing struggle against in Cuba has also Obama also plans violence and terrorism, and we are been the subject of to withdraw troops going to do so vigilantly, we are controversy. During from Iraq. He has going to do so effectively, and we his first week in spoken to the Iraqi are going to so in a manner conoffice, Obama signed prime minister, sistent with our values, and our executive orders Nouri al-Maliki, ideals. to have it closed about the process

-Barack Obama within a year, saying and the Pentagon is that “The message assessing a proposal that we are sending in line with pledges around the world is Obama made during that the United States intends to prosecute his campaign to pull all troops out within 16 the ongoing struggle against violence and months. terrorism and we are going to do so vigilantly, He is also proposing deploying more we are going to do so effectively, and we are troops to Afghanistan in a plan to shift the going to do so in a manner consistent with military focus to the rise in violence from the our values, and our ideals.”

Taliban.

He also required the closure of Obama has also attempted to reach out other similar prisons and ordered CIA to Middle Eastern countries by giving an interrogators to discontinue using harsh interview to an Arab television network.

“

“

Kat VarDell

Another executive order Obama has signed repeals a policy instituted by President Ronald Reagan that bans foreign Aid funds being used for abortions. This will allow tax dollars to be given to organizations that include abortion as a method of family planning in foreign countries.

In a symbolic gesture to the American people, Obama is also freezing salaries of about 100 White House staff earning $100,000 a year or more.

“Families are tightening their belts, and so should Washington,” Obama said in a statement.

Obama has also been at work attempting to improve the environment. Much of his work for the environment is interwoven with the economic stimulus.

“This should be an opportunity for us to retool, “ he said.

The stimulus package includes $9.2 billion that would be used to protect drinking water supplies, wilfdlife refuges and national parks.

He has also sped up the process to apply new fuel economy standards to 2011 car models.

Other work includes strengthening the Freedom of Information Act, which will make it more difficult to keep government workings secret, and expanding funding for the State Children’s Health Insurance

Cedar Post

It seems like THAT word is being tossed around a lot lately. In classrooms, cafeterias, dining rooms...it’s back. The word that makes teachers tremble and parents grumble. It’s (cue the Darth Vader theme) LEVY time!!!

Okay, enough with the humor: let’s get down to business. Students are confused. We’ve got teachers and coaches telling us that we’ll inhale roses and excrete butterflies if the levy passes.

On the other hand, parents, grandparents, and other undesirables are getting ready for the apocalypse. So who do we listen to?

This is whats called a “supplemental levy.”

That means we’re not passing a new tax, just renewing the one that already exists.

Unlike the previous levy, this one will go directly to extracurricular activities and staff salaries. Unfortunately, if the levy doesn’t pass, most of these will be the first victims of the underfunding monster. Not to mention, schools might lose the few fresh teachers they

Losing the levy loses more than money

have—you know, the ones you couldn’t sell to a prehistoric museum A few parents seem determined to retaliate with endless grumbling . They say the school makes the same threats every year, they already pay for education through their taxes, the system keeps draining away their income. Most importantly, why is this already an issue when they just passed a substantial levy?

All of these are valid questions. But the truth is, if this levy doesn’t pass, you won’t have the luxury of reading this newspaper next year. You won’t have any student news to goggle at, opinion columns to rant about, or funny quotations to laugh over. You might not be auditioning for the school play, or even attending one. You might not be watching or playing football, basketball, or any other sport.

You might have some of these options next year. The question is: are any of them so

worthless that they deserve to be cut? These “extracurricular activities” offer far more than an alternative use of otherwise worthless time.

They give students a productive outlet for their energy, but most importantly, students get to do valuable work with other people their own age.

They become a team; sometimes, a family.

Is that really worth losing?

These are phrases Cedar Post staff members have heard from students of SHS. The views expressed in Word for Word are not necessarily shared by the Cedar Post.

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O V

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February 2009

• Is he Black? Cause he looks brown to me.

• There’s a girl that sat in front of me today that smelled like Fruit Roll-Ups. I almost ate her.

• You know it’s bad when it’s illegal in Mexico.

Obama will bring back Camelot

TALA WOOD

• Are those trees or dancing Africans?

KAT VARDELL

Staff Reporter Why did I sob my eyes out on Election Day, and again on Inauguration Day? Not for the normal reasons. I was ecstatic. The eight years I spent under George W. Bush felt similar to lying under a huge boulder that I couldn’t move; I just got angrier, and the rock just got heavier. Barack Obama’s election and inauguration felt like a deep breath of fresh air. The crying was a natural response.

Sure, he has made some mistakes in his nominees for his administration, but he has openly admitted to them: “I’ve got to own up to my mistake which is that ultimately it’s important for this administration to send a message that there aren’t two sets of rules.”

A politician who admits making a mistake? How refreshing.

Excuse me, I feel some more tears coming on… OK, I think the urge has settled down.

Has he followed his campaign promises? Not as quickly as I would like, but he’s getting a whole lot

So far, Obama is struggling as President

Copy Editor

more done in the first 100 days than Bush did in his whole eight years.

In his first few months, Obama has already reached out to the Middle East, hoping for peace, and has repeatedly stated that there will be no torture under his administration.

Obama’s ordering the closure of Guantanamo Bay “no later than a year from now” is a also a strong step in the right direction. We are not making America safer by arresting people and then not allowing them trials. All we are doing is alienating the rest of the world, and making new enemies. As Obama puts it, America must maintain “our values and our ideals.” Our Constitution grants us due process of law, and the right to a speedy and public trial, three ideals that Americans have not applied for the last eight years to the current 250 prisoners accused of having links to terrorism.

With Obama at the helm, maybe the world can look at America as a place of equality and freedom again, not corruption and torture.

• Synthetic Nightmare raped my ears in a good way.

After the vast amount of effort and money put into Barack Obama’s campaign, he seems to be struggling as President and making many moves that will not help.

Obama’s main focus right now seems to be on the economic stimulus plan, which involves borrowing money we don’t have.

This has been dubbed Obama’s New Deal, in reference to the very similar plan instituted by Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression. But it is hope rather than history that is being consulted to believe that this plan will work.

Numerous instances in history have shown how well economic stimulus works. Perception is sometimes that Roosevelt fixed the Great Depression with government intervention, but in fact, he got elected for four terms while he threw money into the economy and created government programs until finally, more than 10 years later, in 1941, the Depression ended, but only because of World War II. There’s

nothing like a war to stimulate an economy, and nothing like government intervention to draw one out. Avoiding a war, we should stop trying to intervene with the natural order of the free market that would allow the economy to fix itself. Although letting the economy run its course could be rough for the first couple years, it would fix itself, and much quicker.

At the same time Obama has been taking actions that look good on the surface, like closing the Guantanamo Bay detention camp and appointing a bipartisan cabinet. After realizing that these dangerous prisoners should not simply be let loose, though, Obama has extended the closing of the camp, which has previously prevented at least one terrorist attack. Obama’s bipartisan appoints prove to bring more democrats into Congress, as Obama appoints Republicans from Congress to his cabinet, and the governors appoint Democrats to fill their spots.

By now, most of us have heard the announcement: On Feb. 17, 2009, our televisions will become a maze of static and buzzing unless we have cable, satellite or a special converter box.

My life up to this point has been largely television-free. I live up a mountain in Cocolalla, and my antenna receives Channel 4, and enough Channel 2 to see a bunch of fuzzy shapes and indiscernible voices. My TV experience has largely been videos and DVDs. For a time, my sports-crazy father and my History Channel-crazed self tried to guilt, persuade and manipulate my anti-television mother into consenting to buy satellite. Of course, she knew of far more appropriate things to spend our money on. And so my

history channel-deprived life continued until a few weeks ago.

Like the other Americans who have neither cable nor satellite, my family bought a converter box, complete with federal coupon.

I figured that it wouldn’t be a big deal. I’d get a few new channels with this handy little digital hunk of plastic, and the picture would be clearer. Was I wrong? You betcha.

My father is greatly gifted with anything that has remote similarities to a computer. But when it came to the DTV converter box? Dad was helpless. He searched the net for ages, looking for the slightest hint as to what he was doing wrong.

Finally, weeks later, Dad discovered what the matter was. The digital signal is actually a series of codes and instructions that are deciphered by the DTV receiver. The receiver doesn’t care if they are strong or weak so long as they are strong enough to make it there. But you’ll either see a picture or you won’t. This is different from analog signals, the ones we have now, which gradually fade when signal strength decreases. My home is outside of its

capabilities.

So now my parents and I had a choice. Go without TV indefinitely, or waste forty bucks a month on satellite. Guess which one we chose?

If you guessed satellite, you’re right. My mother, needless to say, was less than pleased.

Dad was thrilled, and I’m somewhere in the middle.

I enjoyed my difference in a society that looks at you funny if you don’t know what Family Guy is. (Of course, I didn’t know what it was until my friends “enlightened” me.) Now I can no longer say with pride: “I only get one channel”- implying that while everyone else is a drone for the TV God, I am blissfully free.

Will I enjoy the new programs that I will have access to? Absolutely. Will I be pleased to be able to see a channel that has a news station that has actual news, instead of which nail polish is most popular this week? Oooooh, yes.

Will I be more television-dependent? I sure hope not, but unfortunately my intuition tells me that soon I will know just what my friends are talking about when they mention last week’s “South Park”.

I just realized that there is something different about our new president. For a while, I would watch Barack Obama speak and I knew there was a difference between him and George W. Bush but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I knew it was something big too. It wasn’t his political views, or his skin color or his accent. Recently, I was watching him speak about the current economic situation, and that’s when I figured it out. He was speaking.

That was it. Our president of the United States of America can speak. Coherently and without made-up words, Barack Obama can speak.

I find this very exciting and the excitement

is entirely unaffected by and unrelated to my political views. So if you are going to get mad at this, then it should be due to the fact that you just love George’s speaking style and not because I am a stupid democrat.

Firstly, Obama can say nuclear (nukeleeee- aaarrr) rather than nuke- you- lar. This was good to hear. I think that if a certain type of weapon is possibly about to wipe us out we should at least be able to pronounce it just so we can avoid any possible misunderstandings.

Obama is eloquent. I suppose I appreciate this but I don’t think that it’s fair to judge someone by how skilled their oratory is. I don’t by any means want to compare or contrast how advanced the two presidents’ vocabularies are because it isn’t important. What is important is that Obama uses his words to actually say something. Obama explains how

he plans to revitalize the economy. He speaks of normalizing credit and stabilizing the market then explains how it will be done. He has ideas. For all I know, Bush may have had ideas too but he never told us about them.

At least, his explanations never seemed to go more in depth than a simple “work hard”. I find it very reassuring that our president can tell us what he is working hard at. For all I know, Bush may have been working hard at burying our country in debt.

For being a secret Muslim and noncitizen Kenyan or possibly even a U.S. citizen, Obama can speak English very well. When Obama became president he said it was a change we could believe in (I think that’s what he said).

It was also a change that had a subject and a predicate, and words that could actually be found in the dictionary.

• The United States is the international $@*#.

• The first time I met my neighbor, he was wandering through our backyard with like, 13 dogs and a machete.

• You had a three-day weekend and you did nothing for your future.

• (Super Bowl commentary) There was great penetration on both sides.

• I’ll kill you with my spit.

• We’re going to live like nuns. YAY!

” CHELSEA KARDOKUS Editor-in-Chief

JENNIFER PRANDATO Assistant Editor

ISAAC DUNNE

Arts & Culture Editor

KEEGAN DUNN News Editor

CARLY RICKARD Photo Editor

JESSE COBB

Graphics Editor

SOPHIE MILLER

Advertising Manager

CRISTINA WILSON Office Manager

MIKE GEARLDS Adviser

Editorial Policy The Cedar Post is governed by the same legal rights as the professional press. Under the First Amendment, we reserve the right to free expression and freedom of the press. The student newspaper of Sandpoint High School is an open public forum for the students of Sandpoint High School and the community of Sandpoint, Idaho, with its editorial board making all decisions concerning its contents; it is not subject to prior review by administration, faculty, or community members.

Unsigned editorials express the views of the majority of the editorial board.

Letters to the editor must be signed, although the staff may withhold the name upon request. The paper reserves the right to edit letters for grammar and clarity, and all letters are subject to law governing obscenity, libel, privacy and disruption of the school process, as are all contents for the paper.

Opinions in letters are not necessarily those of the staff, nor should an opinion expressed in a public forum be construed as opinion or policy of the administration, unless so attributed.

The CP strongly encourages you to voice your opinion through the student paper.

E-mail your letter or bring it by E8.

Sandpoint High School 410 South Division Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208) 263-3034 ext 244 shscedarpost@gmail.com

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Cedar Post

Februrary 2009

Letters to the Editor This is where your thoughts go. Feel passionately about something? We are your public forum. Drop a letter with your thoughts and name in room E8 or e-mail shscedarpost@gmail.com

Students disagree with Tala Wood’s column Tala Wood, with all due respect and fairness- of which you gave our armed forces none- it has been our displeasure to discover, upon mulling over your accusations against the military for a considerable portion of our precious time, that your ideas against the armed forces are as singularly discombobulated and groundless as the very syntax that struggles to hold them up.

Furthermore, a fetid stench rises from of the mediocrity of your facts, your concerns, and your title that threatens to choke out anyone who possesses the slightest amount of common sense. The illogical allegations in your column are so outrageous that we wouldn’t dare touch them with a yardstick, let alone treat them with any semblance of respect or deference. All denouncements aside, we have laid out a well thought out and lucid list of complaints that demands attention.

First off, where did you get the statistic about military spouses reporting domestic violence that is five times the civilian rate? The Onion? And where’s your antecedent for that matter? Who are “they”?

Are they women in the military getting raped, or men in the military doing the raping? Either option is slanderous and not deserving of even the shortest glance by an intelligent student here at Sandpoint High.

And what’s your big problem with the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test? The ASVAB is a military test given to people that are interested in joining a branch of the armed forces; of course they’re going to contact you, you and whoever else takes that test.

As for the United States Military Justice System, it is true that the military does indeed have its own court systems. Civilians have no idea what its like to be shot at by an insurgent, or what it is like to

shoot a hostile. They don’t even know what its like to go through boot camp. Because of their lack of common knowledge and experience, civilians are unqualified to try soldiers as they are not their peers. The constitution guarantees the right for everyone to have a speedy trial by a jury of their peers.

The military courts ensure this right by keeping civilians out of martial legal affairs. In other words, if you have a problem with the US Army’s martial courts then you have a problem with the US constitution.

You say you don’t want to offend anyone, but your fruits show otherwise. As two patriots, we collectively have and have had two great uncles, two grandfathers, a cousin, a father, and two brothers in the armed forces, and therefore have far more understanding about and experiences with the US military than you ever will and find your accusations against said military extremely fraudulent and completely uncalled for. On the same note, your lack of ethos is glaring in your disinformation that makes up the majority of the cesspool of your fake facts. Furthermore, your libelous, accusatory, inflammatory, flagrant, horrendously ill researched, and poorly punctuated editorial has driven us to the nadir of our patience with your nonsense.

As for the military having no place in our schools, well, they’re both federally funded programs; therefore, the military has every right to be present in our schools. You don’t like it? You can just drop out. And we like our National Guard pencils- thank you very much.

You say you do not support deceit in the military- neither do we. We may not be big fans of misleading advertising, but, like it or not, a capable military is a standard requirement and essential right of any

sovereign nation that desires its independence, and in order to have a capable military we need capable recruits. Without a draft, the military does, unfortunately, have to rely on advertising to get the word out to reach potential recruits. The First Amendment guarantees the military’s prerogative to free speech and secures them their well deserved right to have their say with American students in American schools.

You suggest that we adopt a censorship of all things military in our schools. Yet one might guess, from your political persuasions, that you oppose a censor against certain pagan views that may be radically opposed to my and Cody’s personal beliefs. Are you willing to censor everything, or just the things that you happen to stand against?

And another thing, you said in your article that 57 percent of those that apply for benefits do not receive them, and that another 23 percent of those that do receive only half. That leaves 20 percent which we suppose get their full benefits. So let’s get this straight: You’re trying to tell us that only 1 in 5 people who apply for benefits actually get them? I suppose you got that piece of unsubstantiated garbage from The Onion as well.

In the future, let’s see your works cited page before write your libel, so that we can debate actual facts and not just malicious lies you print about the military in your column. We want nothing to do with your fictitious accounts of makebelieve crimes that the US armed forces has inflicted on you when all they really did was give you a telephone call; deal with it.

Oh, and before you publish any more poorly supported opinion columns, take your story over to McNulty and get your commas, hyphens, and articles fixed up beforehand.

Student doesn’t agree with breaking Grad Night traditions I am writing this letter in regard to the recent grad night article in the Daily Bee informing us of the colossal amount of senior prize money now alternately going toward the funding of the ever enchanting and “exciting” Triple Play venue. Following numerous, previous transgressions towards the senior class throughout the duration of this year, this one is simply another deep disappointment for the vast majority of our senior class.

The seniors’ privileges and traditions this year have been downsized and virtually eliminated, from taking away the ever anticipated senior hall, to impulsively altering previous requirements to increase school funding, that now require us to take at least 6 classes to graduate, causing many hard working students to have to work for irrelevant credits.

Each time we attempt to display even a marginal amount of school spirit, the administration cuts us down, by taking away cones that say “Go Bulldogs,” and

even refusing to let us make a simple tunnel for the team.

Wonder why our school is completely lacking in the school spirit department?

That is why! When any and all attempts seem to get shut to the ground, why would we even want to try?

However, among the list of transgressions towards the senior class, the cherry on top is grad night.

First of all, Triple Play is fun when you are five; as a senior, not so much. Going carting around in a circle is only enthralling for so long. At the first grad night meeting many parents were under the impression that Triple Play was less expensive than the fair grounds, which would allow more money to be allocated towards fits to help prepare seniors for their upcoming college ventures. Well, once again the senior class receives yet another disappointment when informed that we will now be receiving $2,000 in gifts, to be rationed between approximately 300 students as apposed to last year’s

$22,000 spent on grad night gifts. Much of the excitement of grad night are the prizes and gifts that the parents so generously and creatively compile, and with $20,000 cut out, along with the new location, the long built up anticipation has now turned into infuriation and disappointment.

At what point in the beginning of the year did our voices become mute, and when will any administrator take the time or care to just try to listen or understand?

Many seniors aren’t even planning on going to grad night anymore due to this ridiculous change this year.

I have never lacked pride or respect for our school until this year and now I cannot wait to leave. So, in conclusion, thanks to everyone who has demonstrated their control in morphing the anticipated senior traditions into an extremely undesired senior year. And to the freshmen: don’t get too enthused for your senior year; at this school it’s nothing to look forward to.

Danielle McNeal senior Another student disagrees with Tala Wood’s column Not so very long ago, I read the column “Confessions of an Pacifist.”

It would be entirely untruthful if I were to say that this column did not disturb me. After doing a bit of research, I found the facts presented in the column to be wholly unsubstantiated, or otherwise irrelevant.

According to you, “the military exists to kill and be killed. That is the basis of its function.” I believe I am going to have to disagree.

Yes, the military is a tool of war. However, it is much more. When our founding fathers gave congress the power to “raise and support Armies,” they intended for our country to always have a security net against foreign powers. A sovereign nation must be able to defend itself. Without a military our nation would never have survived its 233 year history.

Furthermore, your comments concerning women in the military need a bit more research. I

would recommend reading the policy of the military concerning sexual abuse.

There is a very supportive system for victims, as well as harsh penalties for policy violators. I also believe it is a gross misunderstanding to believe that all women never wish to see combat. I believe there are many women who, just like many men, join the military in order to serve their country on the front lines. To imply that women would not wish to fight is, well, a bit sexist.

As to recruiting, I believe it is a very essential part of our military. The whole intent of the ASVAB is to identify individuals who are capable and interested in joining our military. I have some difficulty understanding why someone as opposed to our military as you, would choose to identify yourself as interested.

While there is some controversy concerning the military and its position in our schools, and while I recognize there may be some

validity to this concern, I still believe that it is acceptable for the military to recruit in a publicly funded institution. I have personally seen the military provide great career opportunities for multiple individuals. If colleges can recruit with the intent of creating careers for youth, then so also, should the military be able to.

Additionally, this institution provides excellent benefits to its members.

When I think of our military, I think of sacrifice.

I think about individuals who are willing to put their lives on the line to protect this country, our freedom, and even me and you. I think of the 245,000 plus soldiers buried at Arlington Nation Cemetery who sacrificed more than words for their country. While you may disagree, I have utmost respect for the members of our military. I only wish that I could have the same dedication and commitment to my country that these men and women entertain.

Jeremiah Prummer senior

Cody Finney & Michael Richardson Juniors Yet again, another student disagrees with Tala Wood’s column I read Tala Wood’s last column and found it very disturbing.

Whatever happened to freedom of speech? The military has just as many rights to come to our school to teach and recruit as a college does. High school is all about preparing us for our future, and letting us explore all the opportunities that we may want to exceed in. If we take away the right of the military to recruit in our schools, we might as well take away that right from all colleges and other secondary schools. This just wouldn’t work, and it would not benefit us, if we could not view all our options and

opportunities.

When the military comes to talk to schools they don’t force you in to anything, they tell you the options they give and let you explore and think about their opportunities.

If you don’t want to have anything to do with the military, then just leave them alone. They aren’t hurting anyone by talking to our schools.

Okay, yes, the military may sweet talk you into cool benefits and sugar coat it, or have some cool design on a pen, clothes, book cover, or whatnot to interest you, but colleges do the same exact thing! When colleges come to talk to schools, they

don’t tell you about all the partying overdoses, rapes, date rapes, and all the other harassments. So, why do you expect the military to?

Everyone already knows that you may die if you join the military. Not everyone knows that if you join a college you may end up raped or die from an overdose. 1 out of every 4 women is raped on a college campus; I haven’t found any statistics to show the military is higher.

In 2006, there were 1,664,014 people serving in the military; less than 2000 died. Do the math, that’s 0.1% of people that served that died. The percentage for people in the ages of

15-34 that died was 0.09%.

So, by joining the military you increase your chance of dying by only 0.01%, and if you die, it’s for a good cause. In the War on Terror, 4,465 American troops have died and millions more have served. This is not to say we should forget about and not care of those few who have died. They fought for our country and other countries so we could be free, and they could be free. They should be honored! Not ridiculed because they used a gun to do so. The military does not exist to “to kill and be killed” as you stated, the military exists to help our freedom as well as others. The military has

stood up for our country and died so others wouldn’t have to. If we never had war, think about where we would be right now. Blacks would still be treated unjust, we would have slaves everywhere and we would not be free! War gave us our independence. If our ancestors hadn’t picked up a gun and fought for our freedom, we wouldn’t have freedom of press and be able to publicly express our opinions.

Yes, the Peace Corps is a great organization, and should be allowed to also speak in our schools, but they did not give us the freedom we have today.

I know of a number of

people who have joined the military to go to college, and they have had no problems earning their benefits, please elaborate on where you got these statistics.

So, yes war does kill. So do many other things in life.

And at least those who died in war died doing something important, they died happy, with the satisfaction that they helped and served for their country. You should support everything that they have done for you. And if you don’t, fine, but leave them alone and let them have their rights to speak in schools.

Like I said, they aren’t hurting you, if anything they are helping you.

Ashley Brush Junior

February, 2009

Cedar Post

Page 5

Student Activism

SHS students find ways to stay active and make a difference in their community, school, world Chelsea KardoKus Editor-in-chief

When the bell rings everyday at 1:17, the majority of SHS heads to their fourth period class without a care in the world, other than the occasional missing assignment. But life skills teacher Connie Johnson and her special education class prepare to sweep through the halls of SHS, helping make the environment more clean and green with every aluminum can recycled.

“We put on our gloves and we have badges and we head out into the commons and we just go through the commons and pick up the cans around the school,” Johnson said.

The recycling program was started three years ago

by Student Council and was

then took over by former SHS science teacher, Colin Conner. But after Conner left SHS the program started to disintegrate.

“We saw the need to continue with the aluminum and started to just do it,” Johnson said.

The students that participate in the recycling program enjoy it and believe that it is part of their share to help the environment. “[The recycling program] is helping our environment to not be crummy anymore,” sophomore Jonathon Crouch said.

Recycling around the school is not only helping the rest of the Sandpoint community, but it shows that the students have pride and care about SHS.

“It shows I have support for my school,” sophomore Dillon Wood said. “It shows support around our community.”

There are many lessons to be learned from what seems to be a simple daily task.

“It teaches them being green and being good citizens,” Johnson said. “We look at it as a job.”

But the recycling program is not as important to all as it is to this class.

The designated recycling cans in the cafeteria are often mistaken for garbage cans, knocked over or just looked at as a joke.

“Sometimes they [other students] kick our can over or steel the lid,” Johnson said.

“We would appreciate it if they didn’t throw garbage in the cans.”

There is a small incentive for the students helping with the program- 20 cents is rewarded for every aluminum can recycled.

“We don’t get much money out of it when we recycle, but what money we do have we put it in the program for activities, like field trips,” Johnson said.

The class has gone on a few field trips such as to the dollar store and the grocery store where they learn valuable lessons about smart shopping and purchases.

“We turn that money into math skills,” Johnson said.

At the end of the day, the students don’t partake in recycling for the money or to be able to go on field trips; they do it because they enjoy it and want to help create a

Supplimental levy concerns community, students Students disagree over necessity, outcomes of supplimental levy

emily thomPson Staff reporter

W

ith the potential of seeing one in five teachers lose their positions and a drastic cut in all sports and other extracurricular activities, the 2009 Supplemental Levy has been on more than one SHS student’s mind.

Students, whether for or against the levy, have strong opinions concerning its outcome.

“I am opposed to this levy because I see the levy not passing as an opportunity for the school to learn how to use their money in a wiser way. I would also like to point out that as in any bearaucracy, the base jobs that are actually important, like teachers, are

Dance: cont. from page 1 There is definitely a bias, [campus policeman Steve] Chamberlain definitely eyes kids who he has dealt with.”

Officer Chamberlain contests that.

“I stand with the administration at every dance.

Everyone blows towards the administration like everyone else.” Chamberlain said, “I don’t care if you are a star football player, an honors student or in credit recovery. It’s all the same to me.”

Junior Penelope Jones went to Winter Ball under the influence of ecstasy.

“I wasn’t afraid of getting caught.” Jones said, “I don’t think the administration has any idea.”

Jones said she went to the dance on ecstasy for its effects.

“Personally, it’s worth 20 bucks.” Jones said, “It just makes you really freaky. It makes all your hormones crazy.”

Jones says ecstasy use is gaining prevalence.

“I know a lot of people who have taken it before the dances, it gets bought out fast when it comes to town.” Jones said.

Students who go to dances under the influence of

cut, while much of the administration isn’t... I can see that this money is necessary, however, I see a more urgent need for budget reform,” senior Victoria Vardell said.

Many students support the levy.

“I hope it passes,” senior Charlotte Johns said. “I think that our schools need the money so we can support humanities courses and sports.”

Other students agree.

“I think it’s really important that it passes,” sophomore Molly Burgstahler said. “Band, journalism, sports; school wouldn’t be the same without them.”

Despite the fact that many students agree that the levy should pass, many are skeptical that it actually will.

“It seems really iffy. With all the lost jobs, people just aren’t doing too well

marijuana find it easier to get by unnoticed.

“I’m not worried by the cops” junior “Sam” who attendend high said “[Dr. Keibert] looked right into my eyes and I just played it streets. They will never be able to catch all us kids, we are way too savvy” While those who dance under the influence find it enhances their dancing experience, others just don’t see the point.

“I just think it’s a pointless waste of time and money” senior Rick Blackford said “I went to the dances drunk last year. I thought it would be a new experience. Looking back it was just pointless. I didn’t even remember anything” Of concern to many is the possibility that many students could drive to and from the dance drunk. Junior Cody Hecker is often a designated driver for his friends.

“I am always a designated driver. I haven’t drunk since freshman year.” Hecker said, “I really don’t think anyone should ever drink and drive. If I see someone at a dance who is obviously drunk and the need I ride, I will give them a ride, even if I don’t know them that well.”

right now,” senior Alex Walker said. “I think if people are given the option to not pay more in taxes, they wont want to, especially now.”

For students that will vote in time for the levy, they too are skeptical of it passing.

“From a voter’s perspective, I don’t think it will pass because of the economic downfall,” Johns said.

Many SHS students are concerned as to what the outcome of the upcoming levy will be.

“It will only increase the unemployment rate, and size of classrooms,” Johns said. “If it doesn’t pass, we must then question the quality of the education we will receive.”

The outcome of the levy will be determined when it is voted on Feb. 24,

Sexting: continued from page 1 Earlier this month in Greensburg, Pa., six high school students were charged with child pornography after three high school girls alledgedly sent nude photos of themselves to male classmates.

In Wisconsin, a 17year-old boy was charged with posession of child pornography after posting nude pictures of his 16year-old ex-girlfriend on MySpace. He now, by law, has to register as a sex offender.

When informed that law enforcements are serious about convicting minors who participate in sexting, many students were surprised, and some, angry.

“It’s your right to do what you want with your phone. They shouldn’t be able to dictate what you do with yourself or your body,” Lockwood said.

“If a girl doesn’t care if she gets sent around to the whole school, then she can if she wants, it’s her own free choice,” Travers said.

Many teenage girls are tricked into thinking that

Carly riCKar

n helping hands: Resource room students sort recyclables out of tras

better tomorrow. “[It’s] not so that we can get the money, it’s just so that

we can all work together for a better school, community and earth,” Johnson said.

SHS Students find opportunities to give back abroad Jennifer Prandato Ass. editor

Sandpoint High prides itself on having outstanding students who give back to the community. Some students, such as junior Chris Nichols and senior Michelle Stone, take their service work further by spreading their community work to an international level.

Chris Nichols went on a mission trip to Uganda, Africa at the beginning of September for a month. The trip, sponsered by his church, included providing optometry and health care for the local people.

“I learned a lot about optometry,” Nichols said. “I’m probably going to go back into that for college.” After studying optometry, Nichols plans to return to Africa on

they can trust the receiver of the picture, but what many girls are finding out is that what was meant for one set of eyes is revealed to the world.

When a scandalous picture was sent around SHS that nearly damaged the reputation of the girl, she spoke out against sexting.

“I was really embarrassed and felt totally demoralized,” sophomore Phoebe Sherman* said. “It’s definitely embarrassing and personal, I don’t think people should be doing it in the first place because they are taking that risk when they send them, even to one person.”

Post-secondary transition counselor, Geralin Meyer, has a negative view of sexting “I’m not really sure why teens do it, maybe they think it’s funny, or a big joke. I just don’t think students really realize the long term implications.” Geralin said While the legal implications of sexting have yet to be fully defined, sexting will surely become a larger issue for years to come, affecting many teenagers accross the country, forcing many to think a little harder before pressing the send button.

another mission.

The culture in Uganda differed greatly from life in Sandpoint. Instead of brick buildings, there were mud huts. Nichols said that he could tell it was a poor country. “[Helping people] cheers me up,” he said. “It’s way more fun to do than just staying home.”

Michelle Stone traveled to Costa Rica over the summer for nine days to save turtles. She went with a teen community service group Rustic Pathways. Stone stayed on the beach and built hatcheries with locals and other teen group members so the turtles could lay their eggs. Forming hatcheries including digging many holes and sifting through a lot of sand.

“It was a lot of fun,” Stone said. “It was interesting and a good experience.”

SHS music programs prepare for Lionel Hampton Jazz Fest Keegan dunn News editor

The SHS men’s choir, performing choir, jazz I and jazz II bands will be competing in the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival at University of Idaho.

“It’s an international jazz festival where jazz musicians from around the world come to participate in live performances, clinics, adjudications; it’s huge. World renowned. It also includes a lot of high school and middle school jazz programs, oral and instrumental,” SHS band director Aaron Gordon said.

Musicians will compete against other musicians in their divisions.

“We do these little concerts, and there’s actually judges that judge us on our playing and technique,” junior Hillary Contor said.

Both choirs are expected to perform exceptionally well.

“Choirs always do really well from this school,” Gordon said. “The category they’re in, they usually dominate. think Jon Brownell’s won almost every year the last couple of years with at least one of his groups.”

Jazz band should still be competitive, however.

“We are a phenomenal jazz band,” senior Tony Charvoz said.

“I expect the jazz band to do well, but our competition pool is much larger, because everyone has an instrumenta or jazz band at their school, but not everyone has an all women’s jazz choir or all-men’s jazz choir,” Gordon said.

Several students have also compiled solo performances for the competition.

“I think Cameron [Brownell] will do well. As usual. He’s a pretty talented kid, as demonstrated by Battle of the Bands.” Pfeifer said.

Page 6 February 2009

BIG idea

Cedar Post

the

Here are a few ideas the Cedar Post staff thinks are just great u

Strike up a conversation- Try to meet some-

one new by striking up a conversation. Don’t be a creeper about it or anything but if someone wants to talk go along with it. See what you learn about them. You can get some pretty funny stories if you just listen. Try to see how many new people you can meet this way and make a competition out of it with your friends. If you’re in some big city tell them you’re from northern Idaho. City people go crazy over that stuff.

-Elizabetha S.

u

n Soakin up the Sun: A freshman girl uses a local tanning bed to bronze for the winter

molly horn Staff reporter

Tanning is a fad that hit the student body a long time ago. In the winter months, many high schoolers turn to tanning to get back their summer glow.

Many teens in the high school only tan before leaving on vacations.

Juniors Nichole Ferguson and Kaiti Lunde always tan before a big trip.

“I only tan right before I go to Hawaii or Arizona, just because the sun is really strong there, and [tanning] gives a good base,” Lunde said.

There are many places around town providing deals and certain

discounts for tanning. The Sandpoint West Athletic Club has booths available for both members and even non-members. Lunde tans here, where the deals are great for members and the atmosphere is very friendly.

People tan for many different reasons but the time is always the same. When tanning for the first time, it is recommended that one only stays in for a short amount of time, working up to get the perfect tint.

“I usually go for about 15 minutes, the time just depends on where you tan,” Lunde said.

With an increase in tanning, skin cancer awareness has also received some more attention. Although

the corner and who doesn’t want a hot bod to rock at the beach? Taking a fitness class can help you shed those extra pounds from the holidays and make you feel great.

There are many gyms around Sandpoint with all kinds of classes for beginners to advanced. Working out relieves stress and improves your self confidence. Grab your yoga mat and get to it!

-Molly H.

Carly riCkard

Students seek artificial sun

tanning beds are quite similar to sun tanning, because the same UV radiation creating the tan, the increased connection between skin cancer and tanning booths cannot be ignored. According to kidshealth.org people who use tanning beds have a melanoma risk eight-fold higher than those who don’t. However, this does not cause much concern in the eyes of many local teens. “ I think [tanning] is really bad for your skin if you go a lot like some people, but if you just do it every once in a while, then it’s okay because you get Vitamin D which cheers you up,” Lunde said.

Although tanning may seem to make you happier, teens must decide

Sophomore goes to Obama inauguration

u

Play ping-pong- Gather up your group of friends and have some intense fun. Ping-pong will bring great conversation and fun, as well as a work out. Although it is not a popular sport, many find that it is thrilling and can get you that adrenaline rush you have been looking for.

-Eddie O.

u

Listen to Sufjan Stevens- Venerable indie orchestral folk god Sufjan Stevens hasn’t put out a proper album in four years, (Christmas albums and b-sides don’t really count) but his immaculate arrangements, beautiful lyrics and unforgettable near whispered lyrics never get old. Sufjan has a song for every occasion, from the downright disturbing “John Wayne Gacy Jr.” to the joyous “Adlai Stevenson” to the gentle tragedy of “Romulus.” Stevens is undoubtedly one of our greatest living musicians and if you haven’t heard him, there is no time like the present.

-Isaac D.

u

Learn how to dance- All of you people that don’t

know how to dance should definitely not go to dances with the little knowledge and skill you have. Instead, try going to a dance class before hand or just get you friends to teach you how to cut some rug. This will eliminate the obvious awkwardness that you have found with your previous dance experiences. Now, for you kids that only like to grind, I have some wisdom to share. Try some new new steps. Yes grinding can be pleasurable, but you really need to shake things up sometimes -Eddie O.

JEn prandaTo Ass. Editor

While most SHS students were busy studying for finals on inauguration Day, sophomore Peik Wahl, was in the midst of the inauguration activities in Washington D.C through an academic conference.

The six day conference, sponsored

by Envision, is a program that focuses on honing leadership skills Emily Thompson and becoming a standout character Staff reporter within a community. In order to attend the Inauguration Ceremony, On March 6, SHS will be making its Wahl had to first be accepted to third appearance at the SkillsUSA Regional Leadership another program put on by Envision. Northern The conference included keynote Conference. The competition will be speakers such as Vice President held at Lewis and Clark University, in Al Gore, activist Desmond Tutu, Lewiston, Idaho.

Secretary of State Colin Powell and SHS welding teacher Yogi Vasquez is taking six students to the competition. journalist Lisa Ling.

Wahl stood about three hundred If they place in the top three, the years away from President Barack students will continue on to compete in the SkillsUSA state competition Obama during his speech.

“I thought [Obama’s] speech was in Boise this May. These are the only inspirational,” Wahl said. “It really competitions SHS welding students showed that he’s urging us as a will compete in this year. nation to come together and just “The two I think will do the best are tackle all these issues that we’re Katie McIntire and Alex Finley. I think they’ll do fairly well,” Vasquez involved in right now.” said.

Take a fitness class- The summer is just around

u sTEffEn spraggins

Welding students prepare for SkillsUSA

A third-year welding student, McIntire will be the only girl representing SHS at the competition.

To prepare for the competition, the students practice using cutting torches and other tools, go over blueprints and hone their skills in general. Most of the students going to Lewiston have welded competitively before.

The competition will have about 60 students from all over North Idaho.

They will be split up into groups, given a blueprint, then build what’s on the blueprint.

Some students use the cutting torches, some do the welding and others lay out design plans. They cut four metal pieces according to the blueprint, then finally weld them together.

Listen to Ego by Beyoncé-

Probably one of Beyonce’s greatest works. With genius lyrics like “it it’s too big, it’s too wide, it’s too strong, it won’t fit...he’s got such a big ego,” Beyonce has definitley reached the pinnacle of her musical career. And for those of you who think this song is some kind of metaphor, get your heads out of the gutter.

It’s simply a somber reflection of the dangers of arrogance.

Show Beyoncé some respect.

-Hannah M.

u

Stop saying “legit”- First off, “legit” is not a word; the word is legitimate. Which this word means to give legal status or authorization. It also means, to be born in wedlock. So, when asked “should we go to the game?” replying with “that’s legit” is not an appropriate response; If anything it simply portraits a primitive and stupid demeanor.

-Steffen S.

Come by and see Dana, Michelle, and M&M for your after school treats!

“Tastes as good as it looks!”

Deirde Hill Liz Evans 710 Pine Street Sandpoint 208-263-9012

Cedar Post

Page 7 February 2009

Fashion Sporting sweats and a sweatshirt cause you’re sporty

Wearing pajama’s to school...

EVERYDAY.

Cars Fixing up an old car.

Driving a hybrid

Flashing your wealth by buying a hummer.

So impractical

Prom Picking out a tux in advance

Picking out a hotel in advance

Hair

Photo IllustratIon by Carly rICKard

Sandpoint Middle School staff feels ghostly presence Kat Vardell Staff reporter

Dark hallways, creepy staircases, graveyardshorror movies have perfectly depicted the most normal ghostly hangouts. But you never thought that the Sandpoint Middle School could be added to this list. In 1953, the now SMS building, opened its doors. Today, 56 years later, walking through the empty halls might be more of an adventure than you think; you never know what you might just see or hear.

Many people have accounts of what they believe was paranormal activity in the Middle School.

“I remember sitting [in my office] one time by myself and I heard basketballs bouncing [in the gym],” SMS PE teacher David Demers said.

“I went out and there weren’t any basketballs. “ Most SMS staff has acquired a sixth sense and has some unexplainable experience within the school.

About 10 years ago, Demers was sitting in his office with his daughter. It was around 7 p.m. and there was nobody else around. They suddenly heard some cans being kicked around in the gym so they went to investigate. Nobody was there. After a few minutes, they heard it again, and Demers wanted to take a closer look.

“I went up on the stage, there wasn’t anybody up there and there was a can right in the middle of the stage. There was no one there. The doors were shut; there was no way out,” he said. “I looked everywhere - there was nothing.”

Some refer to the ghost as a “her”, some an “it” and some as their wild and crazy imagination.

But the existence of one cannot be denied -

especially in the library.

“We do seem to have [a ghost] in here,” SMS Librarian Julie Smith said. “I don’t know if she doesn’t like what’s on the shelves, but books fly!”

Although seeing the books fly is a sporadic thing, it mostly happens when the students are leaving school for the year or coming back at the beginning of they year. It has been witnessed by many but stays a mystery to all.

“My aides, they’ve all experienced it. It’s really bizarre,” Smith said. “I don’t think they’re malicious; except for creating a little havoc once and a while for us.”

The library has come to be known as the ghost’s most popular hangout and where some of the most unexplainable events have taken place.

Last year during a no-passing period there was a Language Arts teacher meeting in the back of the library. As the teachers were starting their meeting some of them started hearing a little girl cry “oh mom!” Their first thought was that teacher Rodney Swerine was trying to play a trick on them, but after they searched the library and the hall no one was found.

“We looked all over and there was no child,” SMS Language Arts teacher Jeannie Lyons said.

They went out into the hall to try to find a janitor and then went back into the library, still feeling a little disturbed. But when they went back into the hall an unexpected surprise was waiting.

“Starting right where we stopped our feet, there was a line of peanuts that led down to my classroom and there were no kids in the hall,”

Lyons said.

Some of the staff are true believers, while others are always searching for a logical explanation.

“I have never been a ghostly person, but that day in the library I was convinced,” SMS Language Arts teacher Jackie Crossingham said. “I don’t come here at night anymore” Former SMS janitor, Frank Malone, worked the graveyard shift for ten years but still isn’t a believer, despite some difficult to explain instances.

“I saw a lot of shadow movement,” Malone said.

One night Malone mopped a 10- foot section, left, and when he came back there were foot prints through where he had just mopped.

“I don’t believe in ghosts,” Malone said. “I’m not really scared of the dark.”

Malone always tries to find the reasonable explanation for what he saw or heard.

“I heard babies crying and I heard doors opening and shutting,” Malone said.

He explains the babies crying as the heaters turning on and the doors from the wind.

“If it’s true that there is a ghost I’d like to see one,” Malone said.

Being able to explain what happens or not, all agree that the middle school has an eerie feeling that will never leave.

“There is sometimes when I walk down the halls late at night and the lights aren’t on; it’s kind of a weird feeling,” Demers said. “I’m a pretty tough guy, but I’m tellin’ ya what, there’s things that are weird and you hear things.”

Messy bun

Greasy locks

Pickup Lines As she’s leaving; -“Wait, aren’t you forgetting something?”

-“What?”

-“Me!”

“You’ll do”

Relationships Giving a second chance because he really didn’t mean what he said

Wearing pajama’s to school...

EVERYDAY.

Activities Shakin’ yo money maker

Shakin’ yo money maker for actual money

Hobbies Attending a global warming rally

Revving that Hummer engine

Appearance Natural sun-kissed glow

Orange palms

Advice If he doesn’t realize how awesome you are by now, he’s just not worth it

Maybe you should’ve put out...

African bat bugs are the greatest thing to happen to earth since...ever Real. Fake. Vaginas.

You see, bat bugs can’t tell the difference between dudes and ladies, so a lot of the dudes end up boned. Oftentimes, the male bugs die post-coitus. Somehow, through the wacky magic of evolution, the male bat bugs have developed fake vajayjays.

Oh Animal Kingdom! What are we going to do with you?

You just keep throwing our scientists curveballs! (that is a baseball term, look it up). The latest curveball to come down the pike(mixed metaphor) is the African bat bug. Gee whiz are theses insects nuts! (Pun most definitely intended) Let me tell you, my Phillistine friends, about the African bat bug, there are a few key things to discuss.

1. They carry the ebola virus 2. They have hypodermic penises 3. To mate, the male forcibly penetrates the female and literally floods her blood stream with semen.

Romantic.

As you can imagine, this mating ritual is both dangerous and painful, to combat this the wily bat bug has developed an incredible and completely unprecedented response.

The have developed fake vaginas.

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“

Countless paragenitalia and counterparagenitalia to combat the other paragenitalia. It will be a vertiable war of the paragenitalia.

”

Scientists aren’t sure why the bag bugs developed thses fake vaginas but the best guess is that the males developed the fake vaginas to guide the hypodermic penises to a nonlethal place. I am not making this up. It’s called science.

Naturally, the ladies got a little upset that that dudes could

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enjoy (using that in the loosest possible sense) copulation without fearing for their lives so, and here is where things get too freaky for mere words, they developed their own fake vaginas.

In addition to their regular vaginas. Double vagina.

Note that one in six females are born with a single vagina to ensure species survival.

These crazy bugs and their paragenitalia kick us and our normal genitalia’s asses (ew.) And for that they must be commended. Commended and feared.

Imagine how many paragenitalia these bugs will have in millions of years. Countless paragenitalia and counterparagenitalia to combat the other paragenitalia. It will be a vertiable war of the paragenitalia.

Thumbs up times infinity (mathematicians might object that it is not possible to multiply by infinity.)

February 2009

Page 8

Cedar Post

Young athletes pursue training through travel Staff reporter For some students at Sandpoint High School, participating in their respective sports takes a lot more traveling than a walk to Pine Street or Memorial Field.

Dustin Pierce, a junior at SHS, plays for the Spokane Junior Chiefs, a U-18, Tier 2 hockey team.

The team is not affiliated with the Spokane Chiefs.

Playing for the Junior Chiefs requires a considerable amount of time and travel. Dustin practices with his team in Spokane two times a week. The amount of time spent in transit for his sport does not bother him.

“I actually like the drive because I’m like a hermit.

I like to be alone and I crank music and scream and flip off cops and stuff like that,” explained Dustin.

From 5pm to 11pm, Dustin spends a great amount of time on practice alone. For him, the benefits still outweigh the cost.

“I like hockey so much that it doesn’t really matter. I’d pretty much do anything. I’d drive a lot more if I had to,” said Dustin.

Dustin can have as many as one to six matches each weekend with a usual average of three games per weekend.

This plus practice leaves little time for homework.

“I do it at school as much as I can and then I have from three to five to do it too,” said Dustin.

The Junior Chiefs travel to the Tri-Cities area in Washington for matches frequently and if they win state, a trip to Los Angeles for a regional tournament. They may even head as far as Pittsburgh for a tournament held there.

Dustin plans on pursuing a career in hockey for as long as possible though he is not positive how long that will be.

“As far as it lets me take it. I mean if I can play in college that’d be great and then hopefully after that, professionally,” said Dustin.

Dustin sees the time that he devotes to hockey as an essential part to furthering his career in the sport. However, success is not his motivation.

“It (hockey) is pretty competitive so as much as I can play the better I’ll be but that’s not really why I play. It’s because I love to play,” said Dustin.

Anneliese DeAragon’s sport, wrestling for the U-16

“

I mean, if I can play in college that’d be great and then hopefully after that, professionally.

-Dustin Pierce Junior

“

Liz Stone

Cadet National Team and Team Idaho, takes her across the country and around the world. As a wrestler Anneliese has aquired a long list of areas where wrestling has taken her.

“I’ve gone to Fargo, I went to Iowa, I just got back from San Diego and Iowa, I go to Colorado a lot, I go down to California like once a month, Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, Montana, just a lot of states, Oklahoma, Texas,” listed Anneliese.

She has also traveled out of country to El Salvador and China for wrestling.

Training for competitions is a cause for much of Anneliese’s time spent away from home.

“I do Olympic training camps so I’ll leave for like a month,

then I’ll come back to school, and then I’ll leave for like a couple weeks and then I’ll come back because they have to take me to the Olympic training centers to train,” Ammeliese said.

Anneliese finds travel for wrestling and time at home as a refreshing balance that reduces the boredom.

“It’s nice because like, I get tired of my mom or my family or school and I get to go and I get to escape, but then its really nice when I get to come back because I’m like I’m home but then after a couple days I’m like ship me off again I’m ready to go.”

There are aspects of traveling that Anneliese dislikes however.

“Sometimes it does get really lonely. Especially when you’re staying like at the coach’s house and you’re living with a different family. When you’re at a camp and you’re with a bunch of people, this place is all new to them compared to when you live with a family, which is awkward,” said Anneliese.

All the time spent traveling away from home and school can make it difficult to keep up with school.

“Balancing school is super tough just because there are a lot of things that you don’t learn and then they’re talking about them and you don’t really understand. Even if you’re away and you’re studying the things that they give you its still tough” To help manage school Anneliese attends only a few classes at Sandpoint High School.

“I go to school, but I only have three classes here and then I take the rest online so that’s a lot easier because I can bring a laptop and do it and then email my teachers here. I was in pottery and that was hard because I had to rush to get everything done.”

Despite the apparent difficulties that Anneliese must deal with while traveling so much she doesn’t regret her decision to wrestle.

“It’s definitely worth it. It’s a lot of fun.”

Anneliese hopes to pursue wrestling to the upper levels of the sport.

“Hopefully, I’m going to try out for the 2012 Olympics. I probably won’t make it that year, but probably the next year [2016].”

Cheerleading:

‘a contact sport?’

Wisconsin Supreme Court rules after girl falls, tries to sue Sophie MiLLer Staff reporter

nConstruCtion: SWAC has recently begun rebuilding their roof due to the heavy amount of snowfall in early winter.

Keegan Dunn

SWAC roof under extensive remodel

ShanySa reiD

Journalism contributer Christmas came very fast for a lot of people this year; and with that also came a lot of snow in a short period of time.

Frequent swimmers at the Sandpoint West Athletic Club were unhappily inconvenienced when the roof began to cave in due to the heavy weight of December’s snowfall. The club’s founder and owner, Don Helander, shut down the pool entirely because of the obvious safety risks and construction began immediately.

Continued stress on the roof was identified and Helander decided to completely replace the roof instead of trying to repair it again.

“We’re midway through the process of completely replacing the roof, which will be safer and a long-term better situation for everybody,” said Helander.

The closure of the pool has had an unfortunate effect on a lot of the club attendees who use the pool for training purposes or even just for a relaxing dip in the hot tubs. Swimmers like Sandpoint High School Swim Team member Hilary Contour have been displaced by the incident and have had to resort to other forms of training to keep in shape for spring competitions.

The pool is expected to re-open sometime in March, but the exact date has not been released. There are a lot of changes being done to the pool, which makes it hard to predict an accurate date. The length and depth of the pool will not be changed.

“The whole room will have a new look. We’re still in designing that right now, but it’ll have a nice, fresh look,” Helander said.

‘I don’t want to say too much because were in the design stage and I kinda actually prefer it to be a bit of a ‘you walk in and go WOW!,’ as opposed to, ‘I knew that was coming.’”

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In 2004, a Wisconsin high school cheerleader fell off the shoulders of a fellow cheerleader, suffering head and neck injuries.

Later, she sued a fellow 16-year-old male cheerleader, who was supposed to be her spotter, for not catching her. The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that since cheerleading was considered a contact sport, she could not sue. If you are in a contact sport, you cannot be sued for accidental injuries. The Wisconsin court ruled that cheerleaders could only get in legal trouble in this matter if the injury were brought on by acting recklessly.

“I think that it is an advantage that people can’t get sued for accidental injuries because people get hurt in cheerleading all the time,” said senior cheer co-captain Tabby Fessenden.

Sandpoint High School cheerleaders have experienced many cheer related accidents throughout the years. While some have been quite serious, most were minor drops out of stunts.

Over the past 25 years, cheerleading has accounted for about 65 percent of serious injuries involving high school girls. Every year, about 95,000 girls participate in cheerleading all over the country. Because cheerleading is so dangerous, many feel that it deserves to be a contact sport.

“I think it should be considered a contact sport, so people will recognize that cheerleading is considered a sport and is not as easy as it seems,” said Fessenden.

Although Idaho does not consider cheerleading a “contact sport,” there are very stringent rules regarding what cheerleaders are allowed to do on and off the sidelines, as well in competition.

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Page 9

Cedar Post

February 200

T P Player

Quick Facts Blaine Shultz

EDDIE OGLE

Assistant sports editor Sophomore Blaine Shultz recently earned a position on the varsity basketball team. Shultz is the only sophomore to make the varsity team this year.

Q: What is the most challenging part of the game?

A: Working on adjusting my shot after shooting the same way a hundred times.

T

Position: Post/Wing Height: 6’2” Weight: 160 lbs.

Q: What is your favorite part about basketball?

A: Playing at home, the fans get me excited and it gets me a lot of ladies.

Q: Do you plan on playing basketball after high school?

A: Yeah, but not competitively.

Q: Do you play in the off season?

A: Yeah, all the time. In the summer, I play Hoopfest and Sandpoint Shootout, and sometimes, we get the gang together and go out for ice cream afterwards.

Q: Who do you play with the most?

A: Cole James Fuhrman.

Q: What is your least favorite part about basketball?

A: Our record. We're a lot more talented team than it shows.

Q: Who got you interested in the game?

A: My older brother and my dad.

Q: Is there a certain player that you look up to?

A: Dr. Julius Winfield Erving II

Spring sports training kicks off season EDDIE OGLE

Assistant sports editor With Dance Team Coach

Cindy Smith The Sandpoint Dance Team is off to a great season so far this year, having competed in their first competition at Potlatch High School. The team received five first-place honors– one in each division they competed in: Dance, Small Dance, Kick, Prop and Captain Carly Rickard in the solo division. The Captains headed to California to compete in the Golden Hawk Championships in Placentia, California on Feb. 11, and then the entire team with head to Boise in March for the Pacific Northwest Championships and for state.

For those of you who don’t know much about how dance teams compete, here is a little break down.

The state competition offers five divisions. Teams must compete in at least three of these to be eligible for the overall state champion. Divisions offered are Dance, Prop, Kick, Military and Novelty. Sandpoint chooses to compete in the first three.

Other competitions we go to offer other divisions as well. We will also compete this season a small dance routine, an officer’s routine and a solo routine. Each routine that is competed needs to be perfected just like the rest and our practice times are focused on the learning of the choreography, perfecting the technique to get the choreography correct and then cleaning the routines so each dancer looks the same. It is a true team sport, as all are judged together. Dance teams get one chance on the floor. Once the music begins they are in competition and there are no do overs. The team needs to be mentally and physically prepared to step on the floor and give their best performance as that is all they will get.

The dance team practices every morning during the school year from 7 to 7:45 a.m. In addition, we will have after-school practices for

the small team, officers and solo.

Even though our competition season is from January to March, we are a year-round sport, with competition just being a small part of what we do.

We perform at all home football and basketball games. The dance team also puts on a great year-end show where we showcase all the routines we have done throughout the year and create some new ones just for the show. This year, our show is on April 24. Mark the date now as it is a performance you won’t want to miss.

As a coach I have extremely high expectations of my team. They never fail at rising to the challenges I give them and because of that they are extremely successful. My dancers rarely miss a practice because they know the rest of the team is counting on them to be there. We don’t have a bench to pull from.

Each member must hold their own and is responsible to be ready for the competition or performance. We as a team are not satisfied unless we give our all and that is not only on the dance floor but in school as well.

Our team GPA averages above a 3.5 and we pride ourselves on having extremely high standards in all we do– on and off the performance floor. I believe if you teach character, class and integrity first, although not coming easy as it takes hours of hard work to get the girls to be a true team, the team will be ready to give their all in practice and meet the expectations of a state championship quality team.

Our two big competitions are coming up in March. March 13 and 14 at the Pacific Northwest Championships in Boise at Capital High School is our first big one and then the next weekend, March 21, at the Nampa Center in Nampa is State.

If you see a dance team girl around wish her luck!

As winter sports wind down, students are beginning to prepare for the upcoming spring sports season, in which a variety of sports are offered, including baseball, track and field, tennis, softball and golf, and lacrosse and soccer at the club level.

Many students already have begun training for their sport, while others plan on starting their training soon.

Track and field athletes are beginning to run through the north Idaho weather, as well as working out in the gym. Baseball and softball players have been busy playing indoors during the winter. There are options open for all of the players to prepare for the approaching season.

“Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday there is hitting at the School District building, and I try

to go to most of those,” sophomore baseball player Tevin Hamilton said. “Also every Wednesday at six I come to the school for pitching.”

The soccer players also have been preparing for the spring.

Many have been working hard since the fall season ended.

“It basically never stops. We train all through winter by playing indoors. I’ve been working out some, and I’ll start running when it gets closer to the season,” junior Adam Crossingham said.

Junior Alicia Mertz has also been training all winter for her soccer season.

“I practice three days a week for about two to three hours each at the fairgrounds,” Mertz said. “The days I’m not playing, I go to the gym and run on the treadmill or lift weights.”

Both Crossingham and Mertz predict their off-season training will

result in a head start for the season Many golfers are looking forwar to an exciting season as well. Som have been training, and some pla to in the near future. “I’ll probabl go down to Newport a few time There is an indoor golf simulato with a professional instructor senior golfer Colton Story said There are other places to practic locally too.

“We’ll practice in the amazin Middle School gym, prett much just hitting balls into nets senior golfer Sandy Whalen said For the tennis team, practicin now is difficult because of winte coniditions.

"I haven’t trained yet. There is n place to do it here,” junior tenn player Brittany Claffey said. “A we can do now is wait for spring Other tennis players go to Spokan to practice.

Dance and cheer begin season

Both teams start out season strong with first place wins

EMILY THOMPSON Staff reporter

While many sports are wrapping up their seasons, both the Sandpoint High School Dance Team and the Cheerleaders will be attending competitions throughout the region for the next few months.

On March 13, the Dance Team will be traveling to Boise for the Pacific Northwest Dance Competition.

At the competition, the team will showcase a number of their best dances in hopes of bringing home a first place recognition.

The following week on March 20, the team will again travel south to Boise to compete in the state competition.

The Dance Team will have their final performance on April 24 in the SHS gym. This final show will include all of the dances the team has learned this year as well as a co-ed number.

The Cheerleading squad competed in the Post Falls competition on February 14. They received a firstplace trophy in girls small division.

They will also be competing in t state competition in the comi weeks where they hope to also bri home their fifth consecutive state tit

STEFFEN SPRAGGIN

■ MOVE, SHAKE, DROP: Sandpoint High School Dance Team practices their prop routine. They will compete this routine at both competitions in Boise.

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Page 8

January 2008

Cedar Post

CARLY RICKARD

■ CAUGHT IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Derek Beitz of Lazarus plays his guitar in the over 18 devision Saturday at Battle of the Bands.

CARLY RICKARD

■ ROCKIN OUT: Drummer Kyle McAvoy and the rest of Definition of Sex Appeal perform “The Pot” by Tool. They won first in the under 18 division.

JENNIFER PRANDATO Assistant editor

T

he Battle of the Bands competition on Jan. 31 began blaring with Division One, the over 18 category.

Lazarus, whose lead vocalist is senior Jacob Craner, began to perform, only to blow a breaker just a few minutes into their set. The band went on to win third place in Division One. 10CC Love Affair, the second place winners of Division One, also blew the breakers on four different occasions during their performance.

Synthetic Nightmare, an energetic screaming band whose act was complemented with a fake severed head, placed first in the over eighteen category.

Some artists, such as senior Dan DeLavergne, played guitar as a soloist while others performed in mul- t i p l e bands. Senior Jack Miller competed in three different bands, all of which received an award in

the eighteen and under division.

“I’m pretty happy with [my scores]. We could have not have placed and overall, I wasn’t in it trying to win, I just wanted to play music,” Miller said.

The bands all expressed a passion for music and a love for playing in front of a crowd, that was clearly obvious throughout the duration of their performances. “[My favorite part] was probably the energy when you get to feed off of the crowd. It’s

Winning Bands Division One 1st- Definition of Sex Appeal 2nd- Tipping Cows 3rd- Three Piece Suits

Division Two 1st- Sinthetic Nightmare 2nd- 10cc Love Affair 3rd- Lazarus

pretty nice, actually,” junior Kyle Miller, who played drums, said. “The anticipation is the most nerve-racking part. It’s not so much being nervous, it’s the excitement that builds up before you get out there.”

The bands differed in their genre of music chosen to perform, although most tended to lean toward metallic rock.

“The whole band was into classic rock and that’s why we chose our song. It was more family friendly,” Tipping Cows drummer Daniel Charvoz said. “It was something we knew we could play in front of a whole bunch of people.”

Bands were also contrasting when compared to how long they had actually been together. The Definition of Sex Appeal members juniors Kyle MacAvoy and Kyle Miller have been playing together for multiple years and recently added on their other two members, sophomore Cameron Brownell and freshman Evan Hanset, five months ago.

“We all just thought of each other as the best players to be in a band with,”

MacAvoy said. “It took awhile to find a good enough guitarist like Evan. We looked a long time, like years.”

Conversely, bands Tipping Cows, Human Tension and 28 Days had only been together for about three weeks before the concert date, although some members of 28 Days had joined the band just 6 days before.

“We just got together for the show,” Charvoz said. “I don’t think we’re a band anymore, actually.”

While Battle of the Bands served as a first performance for many aspiring artists, others have already become fairly experienced in the field. Sophomore Edwin Olding, the guitarist for Human Tension, has performed at the Clark Fork homecoming dance as well as the Beyond Hope company picnic. Jack Miller has had experience playing in school or jazz bands, but made his debut as a headliner at the concert. Bassist Kyle Miller of The Definition of Sex Appeal has played at several Open Mics at the Downtown Crossing. The bands current contest win will hopefully lead to future publicity and recognition.

“We’re playing another whole concert because the people at the Panida and the soundguy liked us so much,” MacAvoy said. “It will be a lot of fun when we do that.”

The feeling of winning Battle of the Bands is a prestigious honor earned by only a few members of the many participants. All six placers won a free recording session with Rhythm Works Recording Studio.

“I was kind of struck speechless when we won,” Miller said. “It’s pretty exciting, it’s like a big feather in my cap.”